Ahmedabad, Nov 15 (PTI) The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) and Ahmedabad police busted an underground laboratory allegedly being used to manufacture mephedrone in Sarkhej area here and detained one person, an official said on Sunday.
The joint operation, codenamed ‘Operation Synthetic Drug’, was conducted around 7 am at a house in Sarkhej area, following which Mudassar Pathan (42) was detained, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 7) Shivam Verma said.
Pathan was allegedly attempting to manufacture the synthetic drug at the underground facility in his house, though he was yet to succeed, he added.
He had downloaded several documents through Google searches detailing the different stages involved in producing mephedrone, and had also visited Rajasthan once to observe how the drug was manufactured, Verma said.
“More than 20 chemicals, including bromine and acetone, and various equipment used to manufacture mephedrone have been seized from the basement of his house. The forensic science laboratory (FSL) team has also been called, and the process of preparing an inventory of the seized material is underway,” Verma said.
Pathan procured most of the equipment and materials from Ahmedabad and Ankleshwar in the state, while some chemicals were purchased from Ratlam in Madhya Pradesh, he added.
The exact quantity of chemicals seized, their value and the amount of mephedrone that could potentially have been manufactured are yet to be ascertained. The FSL team, NCB and local police are examining the material and the stage of the manufacturing process, Verma said.
Pathan also owns an eatery named Ratlam Cafe on Mumatpura Road, which is being searched to ascertain if it has links to the alleged drug manufacturing operation, police said.
As per preliminary information, Pathan was running the underground laboratory on his own, and his wife and two children had no involvement in the activity, Verma said, adding that further probe into the case will be conducted by the NCB.
Pathan has four previous offences registered against his name at Sarkhej police station, including cases related to attempt to murder, rioting and assault, he added. PTI PJT BNM
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